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SAN FRANCISCO (CBS/Bleacher Report) – The NFL unveiled the 2013 schedule Thursday, pitting the Green Bay Packers against the 49ers in San Francisco Sept. 8 to open the season.

The 49ers will have a rematch of 2012 NFC championship game come Dec. 23 at Atlanta in the final Monday-nighter of the season the Candlestick Park farewell, can be seen on KPIX 5.

For a west coast team, avoiding early games (1 p.m. ET starts) on the opposite side of the country is crucial, as those often result in lackluster, tired performances, according to Tim Keeney of Bleacher report. The Niners have only two scheduled early games, and one of those (at Jacksonville) is in London, where the team will arrive several days in advance.

The next obstacle, according to Keeney, is avoiding back-to-back road weeks. The 49ers face that challenge twice in 2013. The New Orleans-Washington hurdles in Week 11 and 12 create possibly the most challenging part of this schedule, but the 49ers do get an extra day between games. With the Tennessee and Jacksonville back-to-back set for weeks 7 and 8— the 49ers have a distinct talent advantage.